Sign plate and other ornamental panel



Feb. 16, 1937. w. H. SPENCER ET AL 2,071,239

SIGN PLATE AND OTHER ORNAMENTAL PANEL '7 Filed March 15, 1955 INVENTORSWILLIAM 'H. SPENCER LESLIE R. BIRDS/ILL WILLIAM BAHLER Patented Feb. 16,1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SIGN PLATE AND OTHER ORNAMENTAL PANELDelaware Application March 15, 1935, Serial No. 11,222

7 Claims.

This invention relates more especially to signs constructed of plateglass or other suitable transparent or translucent material wherebynovel light effects as well as contrasts in the characteristicappearance of a legend or design with respect to its background, may beproduced in ornamental panels or signs.

The primary purpose of our invention is to provide plate glass signsof'improved construction and for this purpose, our inventioncontemplates more especially a refinement and extension of the methodshown and described in U. S. Patent No. 1,525,107 which was granted inthe name of W. H. Spencer under date of February 3, 1925, the purposeofthe present invention being to form protruding lens-like bodies oftranslucent or transparent material which stand out in strong reliefwith respect to a background of contrasting character. According to theembodiment of our invention shown on the drawing, an excavatingoperation (preferably performed by sand blast) is utilized to form adesign, letter or legend out of solid bodies of glass which protrude inbold relief from a roughened temporary surface left by the sand-blastingoperation. For this purpose, a resist sheet is first applied to onesurface of the panel and after portions of said resist sheet have beencut away around and exterior to portions of the smooth polished surfaceof the plate glass which are to form the top or forwardly-presentedsurfaces of the design, letter or legend, the sand blast is appliedtothe outlying areas of the plate glass to form portions of relativelylesser thickness which correspond to background areas for the solidglass characters formed by other portions of relatively greaterthickness or degree of relief. According to the above identified SpencerPatent No. 1,525,107, this step in theprocess was followed by anelectroplating operation which covered the beveled side wall surfaces ofthe relief characters as well as the roughened background from which thecharacters protruded. In consequence, the luminous and illuminatingeffects in the beveled edges of the solid glass characters due to theirinherent properties of reflection, refraction and diffusion of light,could not be utilized under the Spencer method which provided no meansfor establishing a clearly defined border between the flat plated areasand the beveled non-plated areas. 'By painstaking experiments andinvestigation, we have found that ornamental panels of the characterreferred to, canbe made highly distinctive in appearance by formingletters or other designs of lens-like bodies of glass which stand out inbold relief from a background of contrasting nonluminous character andin which the basal outlines of the luminous side walls of the lens-likebodies are sharply defined from said background.

In the drawing which illustrates an adaptation of our invention to aplate or block of colored flashed glass, successive stages of theprocess are represented by effects produced on a fragmentary portion ofthe plate glass as shown on a fragmentary transverse section on the lineA-B of Figure 6.

Figure 1 is a fragmentary vertical section of the plate glass panelprior to the excavating operation, said panel being provided with aflashed layer of colored glass at the top.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 after portions of the glass platehave been excavated by sand blast over predetermined areas of one faceto form lens-like characters in relief with concave bevelled side wallsof roughened glass.

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 showing a step in the processpreliminary to the electroplating operation,

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 showing the partly finished signin readiness for the electroplating operation.

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 of the completed sign plate.

Figure 6 is a face view of a portion of the completed sign plate.

According to the preferred embodiment of our invention shown on thedrawing, a slab l of plate glass is covered by an applied sheet 2 ofresist having an adhesive incorporated therein so that when the initialblast of sand strikes thereon, a protective layer of sand is formed fordeflecting the sand blast from the resist during the continued action ofthe sand blast. Assuming that a plate glass sign having the appearanceshown in Figure 6 of the drawing, is to be produced, portions of theresist sheet 2 are cut away around and exterior to portions of the plateglass surface which are to form the top smooth surfaces of the lettersshown in Figure 6. The prepared slab is now ready for the sand-blastoperation which is directed upon the slab in such a manner as toexcavate portions 4, 4, of the plate glass slab extending around andexterior to the finished relief characters. As a. result of thissand-blasting operation, the plate glass slab is reduced to the formshown in Figure 2 of the drawing, in which protuberant bodies 5 of solidglass form-letters or other characters provided with bevelled concaveside walls of roughened glass due to the etching operation. For thepurpose of safeguarding the light-transmitting, light-reflecting andlight-diffusing properties of the translucent side walls of the reliefcharacters during subsequent operations on the plate glass slab, thebevelled side walls are temporarily covered by layers of suitablecomposition such, for example, as a gelatine and glue preparation whichprovides a protective covering for the ground glass surfaces andprevents access thereto of the conductive coating solution employed fordepositing a layer 8 of graphite, metallic paint or silver etc. on thebackground areas in preparation for an electroplating operation. Asshown in Figures 3 and 4 of the drawing, the protective layers 6terminate outwardly at the bottom in alinement with a rectangular recesswhich sharply defines the basal outline of the letter from the depressedroughened background area upon which the conductive coating 8 isdeposited. During the electroplating operation a layer 9 of metalbecomes deposited on the conductive layer 8, as indicated in Figure 5 ofthe drawing. The finished plate glass sign comprises an electroplatedpanel provided with protuberant uncoated bodies of solid glass whichform letters or other characters in bold relief. Moreover, thesecharacters in relief are provided with smooth flat top surfacesconsisting of residual portions of the original polished surface of theplate glass, and roughened beveled side walls, and by virtue of theirinherent properties of reilection, refraction and diffusion, producestriking ornamental effects in contrast to the metallic or opaquebackground from which they stand out. Especially beautiful effects maybe obtained by means of a slab of plate glass embodying a layer la offlashed glass of any desired color at the top. Not only is the finishedsign plate produced by this method a thing of striking beauty but itsconstruction is rendered permanent due to the durable qualities of thesubstantially fiat background consisting of an electroplated area on aroughened surface and the solid glass lenslike bodies protrudingtherefrom. By an inspection of Figure 5 of the drawing, it will be seenthat the concave perimetral walls of the relief characters are curvedcontinuously from the flat surfaces of said characters and outwardly andrearwardly therefrom into approximate parallelism with the common planeof said fiat surfaces, the forwardly extending marginal portions of theconcavely bevelled roughened side walls being approximately normal tosaid common plane at the flat surfaces of the plate glass portions ofrelatively greater thickness. Furthermore, the basal outlines of therelief characters are sharply defined from the electroplated backgroundby the shoulder I against which the metal plate of the background abuts.In consequence, with one or more sources of light arranged in the rearof a sign plate constructed as described above, and in relation to agiven superficial area of the polished fiat surface of each letter, arelatively much enlarged light aperture is provided between the spacededges of the plates 9, 9, throughwhich the light rays strike theroughened concavely bevelled walls from within at progressivelydifferent angles from the basal margins of the lens-like bodies of glassto the fiat surfaces at the top. Due to the provision of co-ncavelybevelled roughened side walls on a letter having a flat polishedsurface, a two-tone lighting effect is produced. Furthermore, thesubstantially continuous curvature of the bevelled side walls from adirection normal to the polished front surfaces of the characters atsaid front surfaces into parallelism with said surfaces at the base ofsaid bevelled side walls, produces variations in the reflection,refraction and diffusion of light rays corresponding to the curvature ofthe side walls which are rendered progressively brighter from relativelysmall cross-sectional areas at the flat faces to much broadenedcross-sectional areas framed within the opaque background.

We claim:

1. An ornamental panel constructed of lighttra-nsmitting material andhaving portions of relatively lesser uniform thickness and otherportions of relatively greater uniform thickness provided with concaveperimetral walls having their forwardly extending marginal portionsapproximately normal to the front surfaces of said portions of greaterthickness, said walls being curved continuously and rearwardly intoapproximate parallelism with said front surfaces in a common planespaced rearwardly from said front surfaces, and an opaque backgroundcovering said portions of lesser thickness and having itsforwardlypresented surface disposed substantially in said I commonplane.

2. A sign plate constructed of light-transmitting material andcomprising portions of relatively greater and lesser uniform thickness,said portions of relatively greater uniform thickness forming charactersin relief provided with concave side walls approximately normal to thefront surfaces of said characters in relief at the forwardly-presentededges of said side walls, and having their rearwardly-presented edgesextending outwardly into a common plane spaced rearwardly from saidfront surfaces and approximately parallel thereto, theforwardly-presented surface of said portions of lesser thickness beingspaced rearwardly from said common plane and defined with respect to theoutwardly-presented edges of said concave side walls by rectangularshoulders, and a layer of opaque material on the outer surface of saidportions of lesser thickness and in abutment with said shoulders, saidopaque material forming a background area extending outwardly from andon the same general level as the outwardly-presented edges of saidconcave side walls.

3. A light-transmitting sign plate having portions of relatively greaterthickness presented forwardly from and surrounded by portionsofrelatively lesser thickness to form characters in relief, saidcharacters in relief being enlarged in cross-sectional area from top tobottom and provided with light-diffusing side walls, and an opaque layercovering the general surface of the portions of relatively lesserthickness and terminating at the basal edges of said side walls todefine enlarged light-apertures in the front surface of said portions oflesser thickness for light rays entering said relief characters from therear surface of the sign plate.

4. A glass sign plate having portions presented forwardly from aroughened background area to form characters in relief, said charactersin relief being provided with transparent top surfaces and side walls ofexposed roughened glass beveled outwardly from and around saidtransparent top surfaces to provide said relief characters with enlargedcross-sectional areas at their bases, said roughened background areabeing electroplated around and between the bases of said characters inrelief to define apertures for light entering said characters from therear of said sign plate.

5. A glass sign plate comprising portions presented forwardly from aroughened opaque background portion of relatively lesser thickness toform characters in relief, said characters in relief being provided withcolor-flashed top layers and side walls of exposed roughened glassbeveled outwardly and downwardly from around said color-flashed toplayers toward said opaque background.

6. A glass sign plate comprising portions of relatively greater andlesser thickness, said portions of greater thickness being shaped andarranged to form characters in relief which are enlarged incross-sectional area from top to bottom and defined from said portionsof lesser thickness by abrupt shoulders, said characters in relief beingprovided with concavely beveled side walls of roughened glass, and anopaque layer covering the forwardly-presented surface of said portionsof lesser thickness and defined from the basal edges of characters inrelief by said abrupt shoul-- ders.

7. A sign plate constructed of light-transmit ting material andcomprising portions of rela tively greater and lesser uniform thickness,the portions of relatively greater uniform thickness being provided withpolished transparent top surfaces and roughened concavely beveled sidewalls approximately normal to said top surfaces at the top andapproximately in parallelism therewith at the bottom to form charactersin relief, the basal edges of said side walls being raised with respectto the general surface of said portions of lesser thickness and definedtherefrom by abrupt shoulders, and a layer of metal applied to thegeneral surface of said portions of lesser thickness, said layer ofmetal being provided with apertures conforming to said abrupt shoulders.

WILLIAM H. SPENCER. LESLIE R. BIRDSALL. WILLIAM BAHLER.

